Real Estate & Relocation ^ Colorado

Where do you want to live? Consider Douglas County...

The Denver metro area consists of 7 close by counties.  One of the most popular counties to reside in this decade is Douglas County, home to Highlands  Ranch, Parker, Lone Tree, Castle Rock, Castle Pines, Larkspur and Sedalia.

Currently Douglas County is the 6th fastest growing county in the U.S. down from #1 of previous years.  Growth has slowed down a little, but the popularity of Douglas County has  not slowed at all. National media agrees, read on:

Castle Rock of Douglas County is featured the August 2007 issue of Family Circle Magazine for being one of the 10 Best Towns for Families.  The criteria for being considered was to "blend affordable houses, good jobs, top-rated schools, wide-open spaces, and a lot less stress." Castle  Rock certainly qualifies with all those features!

Castle Rock is located south of Denver on I-25.  It is midway between Denver and Colorado Springs making it an excellent choice for families who may work in each of the major Colorado cities.

Douglas County was  featured in Money Magazine as one of the "skinniest" counties. It ranked 18th on the list for job growth.

Parker, another popular Douglas County hometown, was ranked 30th on the "100 best Places to Live" list.

Douglas county as a whole offers a nice blend of both town and rural living.  Residents enjoy close proximity to the recreation in the mountains and the sizzle of Denver culture, all never more than 60 minutes away.

The Douglas County School District is headquartered in Castle Rock and is officially the 3rd largest school district in Colorado. As a result of the influx of new students, the district is in the process of building more schools.  Students in Douglas county can almost count on attending a new or fairly new facility.

Academic achievements of students in the Douglas County school average well above the overall Colorado state averages in all grades.  Douglas County is a destination for parents wanting to place their children in an excellent learning environment.

Need more information about Douglas County real estate visit my website!

So many houses for sale so little time

House hunting is very intimidating when there are so many homes to choose from.  I've been working with a buyer, let's call her Mary.  Mary is moving to the Denver metro area and was very concerned about "finding the perfect home in the perfect neighborhood."  Mary's desires are very typical of just about everyone moving into a new home, particularly when they are relocating from a different part of the country.

When we first started working together, long before we actually met, Mary felt the only way she could ever feel comfortable about making a decision was to move here and rent a home for a few months. That way she could investigate all the areas, see all the homes that were available before ever committing to purchase one.

The rent now-buy later strategy is a very popular one.  Typically first time transferees find comfort in this plan, because they have never made such a major transition before.

However Mary, being an experienced mover, had relocated more than once. She was a savvy mover, but for some reason was letting the "bad press" about foreclosures in the Denver metro area get to her.

We talked on the phone on several occasions and I could feel Mary was being to feel more comfortable with the move and less comfortable with her plan of torture of making a double move.  Her dream was to be able to visit Denver for a few days or more and find the perfect house in the perfect neighborhood and make a door-to-door move when her home sold back east.

I agreed with Mary that this was the perfect situation and we should try to make her dream come true.  I assured her I would never push her to make a decision.  My part in her plan was to supply her with as much information about the potential areas as possible.  She would have time prior to the move to study her top priorities, which were good schools, a youngish neighborhood where children would have plenty of playmates and she really didn't want to travel more than 7 minutes to a grocery store.

No problem!

Mary scheduled a 4 day trip. She was still apprehensive about getting the job done in 4 days.  I knew by her description there were several areas that would fit the bill.

The first day out was the usual reality check.  Mary learned quickly what the Denver 'burbs had to offer. 

Day Two the whole plan came together beautifully. We were able to target 2 homes she would be perfectly happy in.

Just for grins on Day 3 we looked at the other competing  homes in Mary's favorite neighborhood.  We wanted to be sure we weren't missing The House.

On Day 3 we were finished looking and ready to write an offer.

As it turned out Day 4 was not necessary for house hunting, but Mary used it to visit the schools and the mall.

Mission accomplished!

The reality is we have 30,256 homes on the market in the Denver metro area (as of June 2007).  This is a combined number of both single family detached and attached homes.  The metro area is geographically huge, probably more than 40-50 miles in each direction. 

When you take that many homes, divided them up by price range, number of bedrooms and other criteria there may only be a total of 20-40 homes that fit a buyer's needs.

Once you start house hunting, it is important to continue the search at a pace to be able to make a decision before the home you like gets sold.  Stretching that decision over weeks or months only means you become a career looker.

Mary learned the best strategy is to push forward, learn quickly and make a decision in a timely fashion.  She will be making a door to door move.

And just for the books, Mary is delighted with her decision.

I love it when a plan comes together! :)

Help Me...I'm Lost and I can't find the right neighborhood!

Brave people who plan to  move to Denver occasionally figure they can fly in, rent a car and drive around until they find the right neighborhood.

Well, brave might not be the proper word, perhaps brave should be replaced with practical.  The plan certainly does seem to be practical.  I mean why bother a real estate broker when you don't really know which way to turn?

Driving the city and the 7 adjoining counties can't be that difficult now can it?

You bet it is!

Finding a place to live is so very important.  Locating the right neighborhood is much easier when you have someone with some background and experience in the price range of homes, age, style, schools and other amenities.

The truth is, real estate brokers who deal with relocation assignments work with people who arrive in the city having very little knowledge of the area.  More often than not our clients have never been to Denver or it's suburbs before! 

Is this a bother?  Absolutely not! Showing off our city to newcomers is  one of our favorite things to do!  When you love an area like I and my Group does, work becomes pleasure!  We love to help you make the right decision.

We help home buyers relocate:

• by providing area tours (whether you are just considering or have accepted the job transfer)
• showing a wide selection of areas based on YOUR needs not ours
• by suggesting alternatives that might fit your lifestyle (one size does NOT fit all!)
• by saving you time with providing relevant facts

Moving to Denver? Call us because we know the territory. Really!

What about a contingency?

Common questions I hear almost daily are those that come from people relocating to Denver from  other parts of the country.  Many housing markets are soft, the days on market numbers are increasing due to the lack of buyers.

Our job market in Denver is strong and getting stronger. Each day we have people trying to sell in another market and move here.  The hitch for so many home buyers is the inability to sell their homes.

Most people don't want to be stuck with two mortgages.  Heck most people can barely afford one mortgage much less two! Having a home in one city and a job in another causes enough stress. 

There are solutions.

• Get tough on price with the old home.  Reduce the price to make it more attractive than anything else on the market.
• Get a bridge loan
• Find a home where the owner will do a "rent back" until closing.  Some homeowners will do this if you sweeten the pot by putting down "non-refundable" earnest money.  That means if your home never closes, you lose your earnest  money.  If it does, you get to put the earnest money toward the closing costs on your new home.
• Rent your home in your old neighborhood until the market improves.  Things will get better over time.
• Consider buying less of a home on this end and moving again in a couple years when the other home has sold.   This way you can be settled and focus on the job.

Most home owners in the Denver metro market are not willing to accept an offer that is contingent upon another property selling, unless it is already under-contract.  Going into a deal that has no end in sight is not a good way to do business. 

But...

Most homeowners are willing to work with a contingency if the buyer's home has a buyer.  So when your home sells and is what we call "under-contract" waiting to close, you can go find a home and write an offer.  Be sure you specify in the contract the closing is "contingent upon the successful closing of your home that is currently under-contract."  This clause will protect you if by some sad chance your home fails to close.

Contingent offers are a way of life. They aren't a sure thing for either side, but with the proper actions they do become a sure thing and just another path to get to closing.   under-contract.

Negotiation where to start...

So you have found the home you want. You and the spouse have both kicked the various "tires" to make sure there are no problems. The neighborhood looks terrific. The grocery story is within 5 minutes as is the school and Spot's veterinarian.

As each new fact falls into the "yes" column of the Ben Franklin list, you are more and more certain, this home is for you.

What comes next?

Finding the right home is just the beginning of the process.  Now we go back to my office to crunch the numbers.  We need to make an offer (most people don't pay full price) so where do we start?

The listing price on the home is typically the one the seller would like to get.  Sometimes the price is based on actually sold comparables in the neighborhood, sometimes it's a number pulled from a hat.

We want to know what the home should sell for, based on our OWN research, not someone else's! 

To do that, I look for sold comparables in the area that match the home as closely as possible.  This process is very much like the process a fee appraiser uses.  We look at style, age, condition and size.

Most neighborhoods and price ranges in the Denver metro area have sold comps that will give us a good idea of what the house should sell for.  I find most of the buyers I work with, get very good at recognizing value. We look at enough homes that by the time my buyer is ready to make an offer, they have a very strong feeling of confidence about the home's value.

Pulling up the facts on the computer validates our findings.

How much LESS can we offer?

The trickiest part of negotiation is the price a buyer wants to offer.  Many buyers hear about how bad the real estate market is and assume they are going to get tens of thousands off the price of a home.  This just simply is not true.

MetroList the MLS service covering the Denver metro area publishes statistics on "price to sale ratios".  These statistics are based on actual list prices and the amount the home ends up selling for.  My favorite list of stats is the Year to Date Summary by MLS Area.  This summary gives the percent of list to sale ratios on our MLS areas.

Consulting this list results in a better understanding of where to position your offer.  Obviously if the area you want to buy is showing a 98% list/sale ratio, offering 85% of the list price on a home will not fly.  In fact it may very well alienate the seller!

Let's face it, as a buyer you have no responsibility to "make the seller happy" but you also don't want to annoy  him to the  point of negotiating higher than he would have had you been more realistic! 

I see this scenario all the time.  Some people just have to "do it their way" and they end up making a mess of things.

Being reasonable, showing you have done your homework, providing proof that you are a well intentioned buyer (pre-approval letter and solid earnest money) will get a seller's attention every time.

Seller's like to know they are dealing with a real player, not a wishy-washy deal maker that might disappear into the sunset before closing.

BYOHT

Occasionally my imagination gets a workout when I'm driving down the highway.  I see a moving van and wonder who's possessions are inside. Where are they going?  Where are they coming from?  How long (if ever) will it take them to sort through the boxes to assemble order to their lives?

I've personally moved more times in my life than I care to count.  Most moves were only from one neighborhood to another nearby.  Two, no three  moves were across country.  Never were these moves made easier for me and my family by us having professional help.  We always did the "do it yourself" thing, packing, driving and unpacking ourselves.

Moving for us was always an adventure of sorts.  I remember being excited about driving the enormous U-Haul truck by myself.  No, it wasn't so much the driving the truck part that excited me, it was the "by myself" part.  My three little kids, who I love dearly were also a pleasure to be separate from at times!

On that same trip I came close to it being "my final destination." After stopping for food, I restarted the journey with the emergency brake on.  Not having deep experience of feeling for the truck, I didn't even notice!  It wasn't long until my trailing husband cut me off, making me  pull off the road.  He motioned me out of the truck and jumped inside. He drove off through a huge mud puddle, thankfully putting out the fire that had started from the burning brakes!

Adventure like this is one I can live without!

Moving to a new home should be an adventure, maybe not as wild as my experience, but an adventure of finding a new neighborhood with new friends and new activities.  So bring your familiar possessions, the spouse, the kids and pets (if you have them), then embrace the experience as a mission in making memories.

BYOHT means Bring Your Own Hot Tub (see the photo above) my inspiration for this post.

The cost of elbow room

Homeowners from parts of the country where the lots are large always want a large lot.  "I need elbow room," they say.  But of course it is natural to want to duplicate the conditions they are used to. 

But let's discuss this first.  Denver and the metro area is high plains desert.  What that translates to, is a different kind of climate than most people are used to.  We have places not to far from the city where there is vacant land as far as the eye can see. But the land is dry.  Yes, dry and dusty.

So my friend if you want land you can have it.  But if you want anything green you will need to water it.

Mr. Transferring Buyer the green acre you want will need to be 1) on an automated sprinkler system. 2) mowed 3) watered.

Last year I sold a home to a couple who had to have an acre in a nice neighborhood.  We found them the home, they bought it.  5 months later they called me to resell it. Why?  There was nothing wrong with the house, it was the water bill they couldn't live with.   At a clip of $300-$400 a month, they decided the cost of elbow room just wasn't worth it.

The good news is...

Denver metro neighborhoods are planned communities.  Most of the lots have been scaled down to allow for a modest yard that offers some space at an affordable, sustainable cost.  The county planners also provide many parks and open spaces throughout the neighborhoods.  In fact some counties pride themselves on maintaining a large percent of land designed as "open space" never to have buildings on it.

My job as a relocation specialist is to help transferees find an acceptable home that allows them to feel comfortable with the Colorado lifestyle and still be able to manage the budget.  Finding the right home in the right neighborhood is a process.  Like putting the pieces of a puzzle together until you  have the  whole  picture, we take one step at a time.

Colorado Swimming Pools...a home amenity or not?

Backyard swimming pools as nice as they are when the weather is hot, aren't necessarily a hot commodity across the country.  The Phoenix Real Estate Guy was answering a question in his blog today.  Questions like this are ones I deal with frequently when hearing about homeowners wish lists who are relocating to Colorado.

It is a natural tendency for people to want to have a home that is better if not equal when they move to a new place.  Homeowners transferring to the Denver metro area often come with plans to have a nice back yard swimming pool like they had back _________ (fill in the blank).

Now there is nothing wrong to want to improve your homeownership position, an owner must consider that some things aren't considered an "improvement" here.  Swimming pools are often considered a negative amenity in the Denver metro area.   Why?

Our season isn't long enough to warrant pool maintenance for just a few months.  Year round maintenance is very expensive.  Pools take up a lot of space.  Most neighborhoods have community pools, which are included in the cost of HOA dues therefore others take care of them.

Of all the reasons above, I do believe because of Colorado's climate, pools just aren't as necessary.  When the sun goes down in Colorado, so does the temperature.  The temps drop low enough to be refreshing, we don't need to jump in a pool.

I have listed homes, perfectly lovely homes that did not sell until the in-ground pool was filled in.  Homeowners seldom want to assume the cost of maintaining a pool.  Finding a buyer that does is  difficult to do in a timely manner, so the pool ends up being an albatross to the seller.  It is easier to make it go away then to wait for a buyer who desires a pool.

Other parts of the country a pool is a huge asset.  Two homes side by side, the one with the pool would sell sooner than the one without.  Not so here in Colorado!

Once again this twist of reality proves that real estate is local.  Moving to a new area takes more research than relying on what worked well in the past.  Maybe it will, maybe it won't.  It is always good to ask.

Win-win wins

When negotiating a residential real estate contract, there are typically 4 items we "fight" over.  Those are; 1) price 2) terms 3) possession 4) personal property.   

Buyers and sellers should consider these items and rank them according to importance.  Sometimes the best transactions occur when we find the buyer and seller have matching needs.  For instance a seller may not want to close until a date in the future, but is willing to take less for the house, just so he doesn't have to move twice.  If the buyer is price sensitive but has the time to wait, this could be a win-win situation.   

Terms include seller concessions to the buyer.  This could be in the form of paying closing costs, prepaids or even buying down a point.  Buyers who are "cash poor" but well employed welcome and need a seller's concession to make the transaction workable.   

Personal property should never become an issue in a contract negotiation.  If a seller wants to exclude personal property, i.e. a  light fixture, it should be replaced prior to a buyer seeing it.  Many real estate transactions have gone sour, due to the disposition of personal property. A wonderful divorce attorney once advised me not to fight over the toaster, since paying him by the hour was much more expensive than buying a toaster!  Same holds true in real estate, don't be fighting over the curtains.   For want of curtains you can lose the whole house!

Sometimes learning the position of the other side is difficult.  Oftentimes it doesn't matter when you do, but frequently it makes out for a very smooth and delightful real estate transaction. 

Change Your Perspective ~ Change Your Mind

Perspective , what an interesting word.  It relates to so many things, visual, graphical, cognitive and point of view.  Today I was trying to gain some perspective on where my current client is coming from.  She is moving here from New York, the Borough of Queens.  I've been to this area, but I can't say that I paid attention to the real estate there. So with the help of my trusty computer, I pulled up some comparables.

After about 5 minutes or so, I now have a reasonable perspective of where my new client is coming from and what her expectations will be.  I love being able to speak to her needs.  Understanding where a buyer is coming from helps me help them.  Helping people by making them happy is what I try to do.

Denver Real estate and relocation is sometimes about changing a person's perspective. When people relocate to Denver, I try to learn what the biggest transformation will be for them.  Depending on where they are coming from, I usually  nail it on the head.

The east coast people like trees.  We don't have trees (from their perspective) in reality we do, just not enough.  Well I change their perspective by telling them to look at our HUGE sky.  We can see for 100 miles, now if we had tons of trees we'd  miss that awesome view!  Have you ever seen 100 miles of snow capped Rocky Mountains?

BAM!  Perspective changed.

<Photo is of The Yearling, by Donald LIpski taken by Kristal Kraft, Realtor>